CEO’s of consumer goods companies (fashion and apparel in particular) are waiting for customer demand before they start to produce better, more sustainable products. The report of Texsture shows there IS an increasingly consumer demand for responsible products in EU countries.

The majority of consumers make purchasing decisions on an individual basis. Important however, given choice, sufficient information and a comparable price/quality ratio among products, Texsture found that a majority of consumers are willing to choose the most ethical product among those available to them, despite begin valued at a slightly higher price.

It is without doubt that brands and retailers are required to play their part in order to give consumers easier access to the products they truly wish to purchase.

Interesting highlights from the report:

Consumers purchase products, notably fashion products, primarily according to the following four dimensions: Quality, price, colour and design. Only after these four aspects attributes such as health, the environment and fair trade play a role [Hårvik Austgulen, 2013] in purchasing decisions.

The price/quality ratio is of high importance to consumers. People are willing to pay extra for better products as long as the products perform at least on the same level as their conventional equivalents.

Consumers trust labels/certification and accreditation, but it is still unavailable to them and not presented in a clear and easily digestible format to fully rationalize their purchasing decisions.

Consumers want easy access: They want to shop for everything at their habitual grocery and department store.

Consumers perceive large brands and businesses to be non-transparant and therefore untrustworthy: Buying locally gives consumers the idea being more sustainable: they gain the automatic assumption that EU labour legislation and smaller transportation distances will guarantee a more sustainable product.

Consumers feel disappointed by unfounded claims and limited product choice in stores: They want grounded information and a wide choice in sustainable options.

European country consumers feel that it is predominantly a responsibility of business to ensure products sustainable: However they do believe governments and consumers themselves also have a role to play.